Monogamy
by Kaxel the Burninator
Summary: Axel just can't stick to one person! [AkuRoku, AkuDemy]
1. Chapter 1

"What do you _mean _you were 'just talking', hmm?" A very angry-looking blonde put small hands on his hips. "That's never a good sign with you."

I let my arms hang helplessly at my sides. Relationships…suck. "What the hell do you want me to say, Roxas? She was there and she wanted me, who was I to deny her? It's just immoral."

"Axel, you slept with a-a _girl _you met in a bar! Then you came home, smelling like sex and cheap perfume, and lied to me! What part of that is moral?" Roxas stomped off to the kitchen and threw two eggs furiously into a frying pan. "I know you're not used to monogamy, but if you're going to be with me, you have to get used to it!"

I opened my mouth to reply, but instead winced at the sound of eggs hissing angrily in the pan. I entered the kitchen and hugged my 'boyfriend' around the waist, playfully nipping his ear. "Come on, Roxy, it was nothing." I purred into his neck, trying to sound seductive. After a night of female, it was difficult to adjust to gayness again.

_But so is the curse of an irresistible hot rod. _

"Don't give me that, Axel." His shoulders slumped. He was cracking. I used the opportunity to pull him closer to me, stroking his stomach. "It's just…I…what is it about me that's not good enough for you?"

Oh, shit. Game over. He was using the feminine nag methods.

"Roxas, it's not you, it's-" Nope, too lame. I sighed. "Look, Roxas, it's nothing personal, okay? I mean, you know how much I care about you, I'm just-"

"Horny all the time?" He offered sarcastically.

Okay, I deserved that.

"Well, yes." I replied weakly. That was the answer, after all. "But I wouldn't leave you or anything, I swear!"

Roxas slid out of my grip, eggs completely forgotten. They looked rather forlorn, frying into oblivion.

"It's not that. I love you so much, Axel, and it's just frustrating to know that other people can see and touch you the way I can." He sat down at the kitchen table. I did the same.

"So, in other words, you're insanely jealous?"

"Yes!" He was obviously embarrassed, but too angry to care. "You're mine."

I grinned. He was so adorable sometimes. Reaching out and grabbing his hand across the table, I kissed it gently. "Okay, Roxy, I'll try my hardest not to fuck anyone other than you."

He threw his hands up in the air and stomped out of the kitchen. "You don't have to say it like that!" He didn't fool me. I could hear the satisfaction in his voice.

Leaning back, I contemplated my victory. Really, I should have stopped then. I knew how much it hurt Roxas when I cheated on him, but…damn! Why was there so much hotness in that city? It was practically _begging _me. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can ROCK! _

My cell phone ringer blared from my pocket. _That _song only belonged to select people, and upon checking the caller ID, I smiled.

"Hey, Larxene! What's goin' on?" I propped my booted feet up on the table, an action punishable by death if Roxas ever saw.

I could practically see her grinning on the other end of the line. "Not much. Hey, thanks for last night. I really needed it."

"No problem, babe. Any time." A twang of guilt knotted my stomach, but I banished it with the thought of future sex. "I'm headed over to the mall later with Marluxia, wanna come along?"

She paused, displeased. "You're bringing that loser? Axel, he's the reason I was even in that bar last night."

"Oh, you two need to kiss and make up. Come on, it'll be good for you."

"…Okay."

"Meet me out front at noon."

"Gotcha."

I shut the phone with a loud clap and shoved it back in my pocket. Larxene, long-time friend and occasional one-nighter. Of course, I wasn't _really _into women, but Larx had a way about her that was just irresistible sometimes.

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can ROCK! _

…The hell? I answered the phone, not bothering to check the ID.

"I forgot to tell you, I'm bringing a friend." Larxene giggled into the phone.

I raised an eyebrow. "A _friend_? Do I know her?"

"Him. He just moved here. Axel, he's a band director at the college, isn't that cool?" Oh, yeah. She was crushing.

"Yeah, simply _amazing_. I can't wait to meet your band geek friend."

"Oh, stop it. I think you'll like him."

"Whatever. I gotta go get ready. See you at noon." I clapped the phone shut again, paused, opened it, and turned it off. Then shut it again.

Roxas wandered back into the kitchen, Suspicious Housewife Mode fully kicked in. "Who was on the phone?"

"Larxene." I dumped the burned eggs into the garbage and put the pan in the sink. "We're going to the mall later with Marluxia."

He hovered behind me. "Oh." Disappointed. I felt like a dick. "Will you be home sort of early? I rented some movies for us."

I smiled, turned, and pulled him into an embrace. "I love you, Roxas." I smoothed his blonde hair. "And I'd be thrilled to watch movies with you later."

He beamed. "Great! I'll make us dinner!" he hurried out of the kitchen with a shopping list. I grinned and leaned against the fridge, waiting. He darted back in moments later. "And I love you, too!" He planted a quick kiss on my cheek and ran out the door to his car.


	2. Chapter 2

"Why would you ever do that?" Larxene stared wide-eyed at the DDR results screen. Of course, her friend had beaten her by two letter grades…again.

"Why would you ever challenge me on my own turf?" Demyx smiled sweetly and hopped nimbly off of the pad. "Boy, that dude sure is late."

The nymph shrugged. "There's Axel for ya. _He_ tells _me_ to meet him at noon and then decides to be late."

Demyx glanced into a mirror, smoothing down a loose strand of hair. Larxene wondered if he had some sort of OCD.

"Hey, bitches!" I climbed out of the window of my car, waving.

"…Why did he just do that?" The band director whispered.

"His car sucks. If he opens the door, it could fall off." The tall woman half-giggled, hiding her mirth with her hand.

"I hope you're not making fun of my car over there!" I strode up to the two, giving Larxene an affectionate hug and looking The New Guy up and down several times. "Well, Larx, your friend sure is cute."

Demyx blushed slightly. "You're Axel. You have to be."

"The one and only, darling." I took his hand and kissed it.

Larxene scoffed. "Yeah, the one and only cheating asshole."

"I take _offense _to that."

"Only because it's true."

"Need I remind you of last night?"

Demyx stepped back, not wanting to be caught in some verbal line of fire. However, after thirty seconds passed and we showed no sign of shutting up, the musician decided to take things into his own hands.

"Well, it sounds like you're both sluts. Nothing to do about it now." He said cheerfully, shrugging.

The bickering ceased, followed by very odd green-and-blue-eyed looks.

"…The fuck? I am _not _a slut." I crossed my arms

"Oh, so don't stand up for me at all." Larxene put a hand on her hip and glared.

Demyx grinned and hugged us both. "There, you stopped!"

I crossed my arms. "Larx, what the hell kind of people do you make friends with?"

"The cool kind…" The dejected band director covered his face with his hands. "Hey, at least I got you to stop fighting."

"We weren't _fighting_, we were-"

"Bickering." Larxene interjected, taking my arm and cuddling it. "Like lovers."

I snatched it back, grinning nonetheless. "You suck."

"So do you."

"Fair point."

Demyx peered out from between his fingers. "Is it safe for me to talk yet?"

It was all I could do to keep from laughing at the sight of a grown man – a _teacher_ – hiding behind his hands and behaving like a teenager. It was sort of endearing.

But also hella funny.

"You can talk, Demmy, it's safe." Larxene said sweetly, patting him on the head. The blonde smiled and put his hands down.

I almost gagged. What was she, a babysitter?

"Okay, then. If we're done with day care, let's find Marluxia and do something fun." I turned around, scanning the mall's food court for my very late friend.

"Just so you know, sitting in the park and smoking pot isn't my idea of fun." Larx said flatly, giving my shoulder a gentle shove.

I rolled my eyes. That was _last _weekend.

"Duh. We're going somewhere infinitely better this time." Crossing my arms, I continued my futile search for the late pink-haired boy.

"We're not staying at the mall?" Demyx looked quizzically back and forth between me and Larx.

The tall woman chuckled. "The mall is Axel's excuse for his boyfriend. We all meet up here, just in case Roxy's in a particularly psycho mood and decides to follow him." She paused to glare at me. "But then we all go somewhere else." The pointed glare continued. "And _some people _should just break up with their boyfriends if they're just going to deceive them all the time." Pause. "Axel."

"Yes?" I turned, having conveniently missed her entire speech. "Did you want me for something?"

She sighed. "Never mind. Anyway, Demyx, you get the idea."

"Yes!" He exclaimed happily, attaching himself to my arm. "Why are you so mean to your boyfriend?"

I didn't even know how to reply to that. I just stared helplessly at Larxene, who offered no help.

"Well, Demyx," I felt like a freaking teacher myself, "I don't want to hurt Roxas. He's very sweet and I don't deserve him and all that shit."

The musician pouted and attached himself to Larxene instead. "Make Axel break up!"

She sighed. "I don't think either of us can decide that."

While they were being wonderful friends and conspiring against me, I finally spotted Marluxia fighting a crowd of lunching people. Tossing a resentful look over my shoulder, I headed off to collect the boy.

"He's kind of a butt." Demyx whispered in a loud, barely inconspicuous voice.

"You'll get used to it." Larxene shook her head and followed me, dragging the band director by the arm.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

_First day of school! First day of school!!_

Demyx didn't feel disheartened in the least that he was the only one in the classroom that seemed to be excited.

He practically skipped into the band room, setting his briefcase on his desk before gleefully heading to the dry erase board. Twenty-three pairs of half-closed eyes watched groggily as he scrawled "DEMYX" on the board in bold uppercase letters.

He turned to his pupils, beaming. "As you can see, there's no use for silly titles in this classroom. I'll call you by your first names, so you should be able to do the same with me."

The students, beginning to feel the effects of their teacher's infectious cheer, looked slightly more enthused then they had twenty seconds prior. Some even glanced up from their doodling and note-writing.

"I'll call roll now, so just say 'here' or something when I call your name." Demyx produced a sheet of paper from seemingly nowhere. "Squall Leonhart?"

"Leon." A tall, dark-haired boy replied from the back row of seats. His deep voice resounded in the room.

"Excuse me?" The band director asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Leon. That's what I want to be called." He said simply, shrugging.

Demyx bobbed his head in agreement. "Of course, Leon." He jotted down the nickname in his grade book. "Okay, um…Selphie Tilmitt?"

"Here!" A bubbly girl in a yellow dress chortled.

"Zexion – uh…there's no last name here…" Demyx thumbed through the pages of his grade book. "That's funny…"

The students watched in silence, eyeing their teacher oddly.

"Okay, forget roll call! We'll play the name game. Everyone stand one by one, tell me your first name, and state what instrument you play." The hyper musician clapped and sat on his desk. "We'll start here." He pointed to a tired-looking blonde boy in the front row.

Said boy, startled out of his half-sleep, blinked and stood awkwardly. "Um, I'm Cid."

Demyx nodded, motioning for him to go on.

"And uh…I play the trombone." He sat down quickly, shoving the person next to them out of their desk.

The pushee recovered quickly, straightening his cowboy hat and standing. "Hey, I'm Irvine. I like sandwiches." He sat down, grinning and obviously pleased with himself.

"Yuffie! I play the flute. Also, I like jumping. I can jump all day if I need to. You want to see?" She began to exhibit her jumping skills, much to the displeasure of the silver-haired boy next to her who was being repeatedly whacked by her excessively long headband tie.

"I'm thrilled that you have so much energy, but I would like to see the nice boy next to you walk out of this room without a concussion." Demyx smiled sweetly as the hyperactive girl took her seat.

"Riku." The victim of hair tie abuse said flatly. "I play piano."

"Fujin. Clarinet."

"I'm Saix." A blue-haired boy said from his desk, showing no signs of standing. "I play the drums."

"Yo, I'm Reno! I enjoy long walks on the beach and long hours of lying in the grass and talkin' about love-" he was interrupted by loud groans from his classmates. Pouting, the flamboyant redhead took his seat, adding weakly, "And I play the trumpet."

The introductions continued in a similar matter, with some students deciding to 'mix things up' a bit (Demyx was greatly entertained by Sora's ability to talk for three minutes straight without taking a breath) and others deciding to keep their information to themselves (he was also entertained by Vincent's ability to stare without blinking).

By the end of the class, mostly everyone was either smiling, laughing, or asleep. Demyx checked his watch and gasped.

"My, it looks like it's time for you to leave! I'll see you tomorrow! Don't forget to bring your instruments!" He waved joyfully as his new pupils filed out of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

The faucet squeaked loudly, causing Roxas to flinch as he stepped out of the shower. That was another thing I had promised to fix. He sighed.

Vigorously rubbing a towel over his hair to dry it, he glanced to a nearby wall clock. Almost five.

Roxas let a small smile escape into the towel.

_Tonight, Axel, I'll be all you need…I promise._

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You can really go home now, Demyx." Larxene smiled and leaned against the doorframe, curiously eyeing the band director.

Said director, bent over a pile of sheet music, shook his head. "No! I have to figure out the arrangement for the flutes!" he glared at a blank music sheet, scratching out a few notes and then running into his office. He emerged seconds later with a flute and proceeded to play the notes, making a wry face and marking through them.

"Look, it's almost five. You don't have to have the concert songs for another three months. Why are you worrying about them now?" She walked into the band room, her stiletto heels clicking with every step.

Demyx looked up from the music, a devilish glint in his eyes. "You don't understand. I have to finish this." He hissed, scratching out a few more bars of notes.

Larxene sighed and put a hand on her hip, grabbing the obsessed musician's collar with the other. "Come on, Axel's driving us home."

"Axel's here?" Demyx perked up and almost dropped the music, peeking over Larxene's shoulder. "Where?"

"Outside. Now stop drooling all over my shirt." She pushed him off of her. "Get your shit together. He won't wait forever."

The band director grinned and started collecting his things. Larxene couldn't help but laugh at her friend's stupidity. Innocent Demyx had a lot to learn about me. She'd been the first to notice his crush on me, but said nothing. The three of us had been 'at the mall' almost every day together for the past two weeks or so, and Demyx never missed a day. Her crush on the musician had been short-lived; Larx needed a man who was more…dominant. Like Marluxia.

She grimaced.

But not Marluxia.

"I'm ready!" He announced, slinging his bag over his shoulder and picking up his black leather briefcase.

She nodded and headed out to my car.

"Took you long enough." I glared at the both of them as they climbed through the windows into my car. I continued to glare at them in the rearview mirror as we sped toward Larxene's house. The Eye seemed to be working, since Demyx was squirming in his seat and the tall woman was pointedly avoiding it.

"What?" The musician finally said in a small voice. "You look like you're about to eat someone."

"Actually…" I thought about the upcoming evening and grinned. "Anyway. You guys made me late _again_. You know how paranoid Roxas is."

Larxene rolled her eyes. "You're just saying that because you know he's gonna ask for sex tonight. Get over it."

Demyx looked rather disheartened at the comment, but said nothing toward the subject. "I hope you don't get in trouble."

I shrugged. "I won't. Hey, Larx, here's your house." I tossed her bag out the window after her. She muttered a sarcastic "Thank you" before heading inside.

The car stayed motionless for several moments before Demyx noticed green eyes focused on him in the rearview mirror.

"What?" He asked nervously, ever wary of my sexual escapades (even though he had nothing to worry about at that point; I was all set for the night).

"You gonna get in the front seat or make me look like a chauffer?" I grinned and motioned for the musician to climb up.

Demyx did so, but not without a worried glance back to the safety of his original seat. While he had somewhat of a "schoolgirl crush" on me, he didn't want to become a victim of one of my detours (again…nothing to worry about).

We weren't very close yet – we hadn't had a chance to be – so conversation on the way to the band director's house was rather dry. I tried to strike up a few different chats about music and stuff that I knew Demyx was interested in, but nothing seemed to be working.

The blonde just sat there, hands folded in his lap. Very rigid. Part of me wanted to pull over and give him something to be rigid about.

But I didn't.

"And we're here!" I put the car in park outside his apartment. "I had a really great time talking to you on the way here."

Demyx offered a faint smile. "Yeah." He started to climb out the window.

I caught his arm. "Hey, I'm not gonna attack you, y'know."

He looked startled and slid back into his seat. "I-I know that."

"I don't think you do." I tried to keep my voice level. "Look, I don't try to fuck everything that moves, okay? You don't have anything to worry about."

"I get it, Axel." He smiled and gave me a peck on the cheek before climbing out of the window. "Don't look so agitated."

I was left alone in the car, feeling a distinct warm spot on my face from Demyx's lips. What had been a normal, friendly action from the musician seemed like much more to me.

"Make up your damn mind." I mumbled, speeding away.

And that was the first of a long string of misunderstandings between us.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hey, Roxie!" I yelled as I entered the house, hanging up my car keys in the kitchen.

I didn't hear him approaching (evidently, he'd been practicing). He wrapped his arms around my shoulders, pulling on the red button-up shirt I'd been wearing. It was a good thing I'd unbuttoned it in the car.

I grinned. Roxas was in an aggressive mood.

Turning, I grabbed him around the waist and shrugged off the shirt before shoving him against the wall.

I felt him shiver as I ran my fingers up his chest, stroking his jaw line and…

I stopped suddenly, stepping back. His face was tear-stained and red, and even as I looked at him, more began to fall. He averted his gaze.

"Roxas…" I hugged him close, feeling more like a dick than I had in weeks. "Hey, don't cry."

He clung to me, virtually melting against my chest. "I'm sorry…" he hiccupped and shook his head. "I was going to make this night really special…I cooked dinner and everything…" he motioned to the fully set table and steaming pots on the stove. "But then you were late, and I thought you were off…with someone, somewhere. I'm sorry." He repeated, looking away.

I sighed and picked him up, carrying him to the couch and sitting him in my lap. "Look, Roxas, don't apologize. I'm the one who should be sorry." I stretched out on the couch, taking the blonde with me. "Larxene and Demyx just took too long at the college again, and I was their ride home."

"Oh." He fell silent, trying to suppress his jealousy of the two, who received more of my attention than he ever would. Both of us knew that. "I'm sorry for doubting you."

I leaned my head back and stared at the slow-moving ceiling fan. "Shit, Rox, why do you put up with me?"

He snuggled closer to me, kissing my cheek. "Because I love you. I don't know why, I just do." He tangled his fingers in my hair. "And I hope that someday you'll love me, too."

"I do love you-"

"You know what I mean, Axel." He gave me a stern look. "I mean I hope you'll love me enough to love _only me_. Until then, I guess I'll wait."

I gave him a pleading glance. "Rox, I've been trying really hard."

"I know. And you've been doing so well the past few weeks. But this happens all the time, Axel. You'll be so good for a month or so, and then one night…it'll all stop." The small boy fixed his gaze on me, studying my face for an answer.

I wrapped my arms around him. "I'm tired." Was all he got in response. He knew how hard I was trying. I didn't feel like psychoanalyzing it.

He sighed and closed his eyes. "Can we sleep here tonight? I like how this feels."

I smiled and kissed his forehead. "Yeah."


	4. Chapter 4

I hesitated outside Demyx's apartment, preparing to be in a state of utter sexual frustration for the next few hours. Luckily, I'd psyched myself up in the car by repeating the phrase "You don't need sex!" to myself in the rearview mirror. Unfortunately, the phrase didn't seem to have much of an effect on me, considering I was formulating thoughts of the pretty little musician before I'd even made it up the stairs.

I had only started to reach for his doorbell when the door flew open, revealing a very red-faced and sweaty band director.

He jumped about two feet in the air before slamming the door again. "Aah! Axel!" I heard him scrambling around inside. "Don't come in! I look horrible!"

Personally, I thought he looked pretty damn hot. But I didn't say anything to that effect. "Hey, man, you're moving heavy stuff. That's only expected. Besides, I don't care what you look like."

The door opened slightly and I could see a sliver of his eye. "Really? You don't think it's gross?"

"No, I don't." I couldn't help but smile at his endearing modesty. "C'mon, let me in. I'm here to help you unpack."

His eye disappeared from view and the door opened the rest of the way. "Okay. Help me move the piano into the living room."

I nodded and followed him through the four-room apartment. I wasn't surprised at all at the vibrant blue paint that covered nearly all of his walls. However, I don't think I could have ever been prepared for the sadly comical sight in the (also blue) kitchen. A black grand piano sat alone in the middle of the blue linoleum floor; its legs were situated on four skateboards. It looked as if the musician had made an attempt to move it, but two of the boards were faced the wrong way.

I kind of felt bad for it.

"…Can _you_ think of a better way to move it?" He asked flatly, observing my humorous expression.

"Actually, no." I laughed, crouching in front of the piano's legs. "Hey, come try to lift this side."

He did, and I turned the skateboards in the right direction. "Okay. Try to move it."

We made slow progress into the living room by those means, stopping every few feet to adjust the skateboards.

Demyx, in his infinite wisdom, nearly crushed my fingers several times when he lowered the piano too early. Of course, he apologized extensively after every incident. I thought it was cute so I forgave him.

He clapped when we were finished. "Yay! Now I don't have to call those weird mover guys again!"

I looked over to make a reply, but was suddenly disarmed by the band director's face. His childlike exclamation combined with his innocent expression..._turn on_. I don't really know why. I really hope I'm not a pedophile. Oh, dear. Let me make a mental note of this. MENTAL NOTE

I put my hands in my pockets to keep them from straying out of my jurisdiction. "Yeah, those guys can be pretty weird."

Demyx noticed the discomfort in my voice. "Hey, you okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine."

He nodded slowly (he so didn't believe me) headed toward the kitchen. "I'm gonna get us some cokes. Sorry, but the only place to sit right now is the piano bench."

"That's okay." I took a seat, hitting a few random keys with my fingers. Black and white keys. Black and white bracelets. My mind wandered back to Roxas and what I was about to do to him.

A few seconds later, Demyx and two cans of coke appeared in front of me. I took a can, but it never did get opened.

"Hey, how do _you_ break up with people?" I asked suddenly, turning on the bench so that I was straddling it and facing him.

He choked on a sip of his soda. "Hmm?" he coughed, setting down the coke and covering his mouth with his arm (he was coughing uncontrollably...I felt bad).

"Uh, sorry, dude…" I patted him on the back awkwardly. "Didn't mean to put you near death or anything."

He latched onto my arm, redder in the face than before. "No…it's okay…" he wheezed, forcing his breathing to return to normal.

I cleared my throat and pulled my arm back inconspicuously, deciding to follow Larxene's advice and limit physical contact to zero. "You alright now?"

"Yeah, I'm good." He grinned and sat upright. "Anyway. I've uh…never really been in a 'relationship', so uh…you're on your own."

I think I made a very strange face, because he cracked a smile and swallowed his laughter when he looked at me.

"_How_ old are you?" I asked, speaking very slowly.

"Twenty-three." He squeaked, attempting to hide behind a piece of sheet music. "What? It's normal!"

"Normal? That's…freakish! When did you have your first kiss?"

"High school!" He replied cheerfully, fancying the interrogation as some sort of game.

I narrowed my eyes. "Did it include any tongue?"

"...No..."

"It doesn't count, then!"

I felt like I was about to have a heart attack. This poor, deprived boy.

...And then the angel and devil inside me decided to have an all-out war over whether I should lean forward and show him what he'd been missing or not.

The freaking angel won and I kept my position. For the moment.

"Well, now that we've established your strangeness," I patted him on the head, surveying the rest of the apartment, "what else have we got to unpack?"

"Everything!" He jumped up, dashing to a pile of boxes labeled _IMPORTANT STUFF!!_ in the corner. "This looks important. I think we should unpack it first."

I cocked my head to the side. So, he carried his oddities into his writing, as well…

"O…kay." I walked slowly over to the important boxes, taking one off the top. Upon opening it, I found it to be full of diversely shaped black cases. "Hey, what are these?"

"The small and medium sized instruments!" He clapped his hands together joyfully, bending over the box. "These can all go in the music room." He directed me down the blue hallway. I stepped into a cavernous (blue) room that looked to be soundproofed on all sides.

_That might be useful later…_

I arranged the instruments from smallest to largest on the shelf nearest to me and returned to the living room, where Demyx had several more boxes full of instruments ready for moving.

"Can you play _all_ of these?" I asked in shock, picking up a few of the bigger cases.

He grinned. "Yup! I'm a little rusty on the French horn, but I'll practice that this weekend. Oh, careful!" he helped me balance the heavy brass horns. "Maybe you should go slower…"

"Nah, I got it." I shifted one of the cases to my other shoulder and kept going. "I didn't take weight training in high school for nothing."  
I put the cases on a lower shelf for easier access. Inhaling deeply, I leaned against the wall.

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can ROCK!_

I sighed and pulled out my cell phone, foolishly expecting Larxene to be the caller.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked supposed Larxene idly, walking slowly back to where Demyx was.

The musician looked up before I could finish my sentence. "Hey, could you help me with the bed frame? It's metal."

"…Axel?" a small voice came through the receiver.

"Oh, _shit_! Roxas?" I waved my hands frantically at Demyx, hoping he would get the hint and shut up. He did, thankfully.

"You sound surprised." Rox said flatly. "Where are you?"

"Shopping." I said smoothly, falling back into my regular routine of lying to him. "Do you need anything?"

"Are you alone? I heard someone talking…" I could almost see the small boy put a hand on his hip.

"Yeah, I'm alone. There are a lot of people at the grocery store today; you probably heard one of them." I ran a hand through my hair, ignoring the disapproving look Demyx was giving me.

Roxas sighed. "Okay, just come home as soon as you can."

"I will."

"Love you."

"You too, babe."

I waited for him to hang up before I did. There were certain things he was extremely sensitive about, and phone behavior was one of those things.

"You're going to break up with him, aren't you?" Demyx tried to hide the hope in his voice but failed. I noticed but did a better job of hiding my smile.

"Yeah, but probably not today. I'd like it if he found a place to stay before I just dropped him, y'know?" I sat down beside the musician, playing with a lock of his hair.

The phrase 'just dropped him' seemed to have a negative effect on Demyx, who narrowed his eyes.

"Is that what you do to the people you break up with, Axel? Just _drop_ them?" He didn't bother to conceal the edge to his voice.

I leaned back, surprised at his reaction. "Well, not exactly-"

"Do you do it to everyone?"

"No, I-"

"Would you do it to _me_?"

"What?" I stopped, eyeing him suspiciously.

Apparently, the band director hadn't meant to go that far. He turned a darker shade of red and averted his gaze. "I mean, hypothetically…uh…"

I grinned, leaning closer and tilting his chin up. "Hypothetically?"

He swallowed hard and tried to regulate his breathing. "Uh…Axel…"

"What?" I moved even closer, tangling my fingers in his hair.

"BED FRAME!" He practically yelled, gone out of the room like a blonde bullet in three seconds flat.

I sighed and pouted, leaning back on my hands. Maybe I misread the signs?

_"Would you do it to_ me _?"_ ...What if he _was_ just asking a hypothetical question? Sigh. I should have stuck to Larxene's advice.

A few minutes later, Demyx poked his head back in timidly. "Hey, uh…could you help me with this…? It's uh...really heavy..."

I smiled and stood. "Sure, just lead the way." I said cheerfully, acting as if nothing had happened (because nothing did happen, _dammit_).


	5. Chapter 5

"You sure did a lot of shopping." Roxas commented dryly, observing my single paper bag. "What did you get?"

I grinned and started emptying the bag. "Oh, y'know. The stuff that we need. Like…milk, eggs, condoms."

"Axel!"

"What?"

"_Axel!_" He sounded angry, but his face was smiling. He wrapped his arms around my neck. "You didn't get condoms."

I smirked and put the milk away, holding him around the waist. "And how would you know that?"

"You never use those."

"Ah, point taken."

He crossed his arms. "So now that you're done making perverted small talk…"

"What, I can't even take off my shoes and you're already horny?" I faked annoyance as he rolled his eyes.

"Come on, Axel!" He did his familiar Hand-On-Hip exercise. "I was just gonna ask if you wanted to go to a movie tonight!"

I smiled and drew him close. "Yeah, that would be cool."

"Really?" His blue eyes brightened.

_They're a darker blue than Demyx's eyes…_

I paused, blinked, and ran a hand through my hair. "Yeah, Rox, of course! I've hardly gotten to see you this week."

He beamed and kissed my cheek. "Great, that means we can make it to the seven o'clock show! I'll go change!"

I looked down at my own clothes, wondering why someone would want to change for a casual movie date. I decided that my jeans and black T-shirt were good enough.

Taking out my cell phone, I dialed up my favorite person (ha ha).

"What? I'm typing up a test." Larxene's aggravated voice sounded loudly. I winced and put her on speaker phone.

"Jeez, just yell at me, why don't you?" I set the phone on the table and crossed my arms. "I was just gonna ask if you were free tonight."

She was silent for a few moments. "I don't really wanna be the third wheel with you and Rox, okay?"

"Then bring Demyx." I suggested hopefully.

"Whoa, wait." She laughed sarcastically. "I get it. You just wanna see Demyx."

"Well, yes." I admitted weakly. "I don't know how to…y'know…"

"Break up with Rox?"

"Yeah."

She sighed. "You can't play both sides of the net, Axel. You know that."

I turned off speaker phone when I heard the bedroom door open. "Look, just bring Demyx. Meet us at the theater at seven."

I hung up and put the phone away seconds before Roxas walked into the kitchen, outfitted in black jeans and a white button-down shirt.

"You look good, babe." I ruffled his hair. "Ready to go?"

He smiled and nodded. "Yeah, but let's take my car, okay?"

"Hey, man. Don't hate on the car."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Freaking A, I should have known. The movie was a cheesy romance.

We ended up waiting in line for thirty minutes because it was a new release. I looked for Larx and saw her and Demyx about twenty people behind us in the line. Of course, Roxas couldn't know that the two of them were there. I'd excuse myself to go to the bathroom halfway through the movie, text Larx, and hang out with her and music boy in the lobby for a while.

Finally, when it was our turn in line, I bought two tickets from a very snooty person behind an incredibly chic plastic window. Handing one to Roxas, I casually ran a hand through my hair, looking back and winking at Larxene and Demyx as I did so. Larx nodded in reply; Demyx just looked kind of shocked. Part of me thought that a certain Environmental Science teacher had forgotten to inform him about Rox's presence.

Inside, I avoided getting a coke (it reminded me of Demyx's apartment), opting instead for a Vault. That stuff is concentrated awesome in a trendy green bottle, I swear.

Around twenty minutes later, I was extremely happy that I decided to down the entire Vault in one gulp. At least three previews for chick flicks had thrown my mind through epileptic, nearly fatal loops before I considered biting my tongue off and bleeding to death in my seat. Instead, I decided to play the Bathroom Break card.

I leaned over and nipped at Roxas's ear. "Hey, I'll be back."

He nodded and smiled, gripping my hand briefly. I considered taking my empty Vault bottle with me, you know, to throw it away and benefit the environment or some shit like that…but in the end, it stayed right where it was; on the ground. Those movie clean up guys would have to earn their paycheck that night.

Conveniently, Larxene had chosen aisle seats for herself and Demyx. I think I knew why. Once again, Larx and I were on the same wavelength.

I ran my fingers slowly over the musician's collarbone as I passed, watching him squirm over my shoulder and grinning.

His eye twitched and he turned slightly, half-standing and then sitting down again. He shot Larxene an exasperated glance.

"Oh, come on, you know you want to." She replied, shrugging. "Just make sure you bring a quarter, you know, for the condom machine."

Demyx blinked and blushed slightly, taken aback. "L-Larx, I-"

She giggled and pushed him out of his seat. "Dude, I was kidding."

He opened his mouth to reply, but the tall woman just shook her head and pointed up the aisle. The band director cleared his throat and nodded, heading in the direction that I had gone.

However, I hadn't counted on Demyx's lack of direction sense. He became quite lost in the lobby.

"Hey," the desperate musician asked a man who was putting popcorn into little bags, "have you seen a guy with freakishly red hair around here?"

The man nodded and pointed to the bathroom with his popcorn scooper. "Yeah, he went in there about a minute ago."

I know what you're thinking: The bathroom? Please, Axel, there are a million places more romantic than that to seduce your crush.

My response to this is: _You_ try sneaking around a paranoid boyfriend while simultaneously getting closer to the most innocent being in the universe, you probably virginal bitch.

So I smoothed my hair back and hid behind the door as he opened it.

The game…had started.

"A-Axel?" He asked timidly. Oh, no. Maybe he was second-guessing himself already.

I moved silently behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist. "Yes?"

He stiffened and made a high-pitched squeaky noise. "Uh…h-hey."

Smiling, I tightened my grip. "You followed me."

"You…you…" his voice trailed off as I slowly lifted his shirt, running my hands up his chest. "Cheater! I'm t-trying to talk!"

I laughed and kissed his neck, earning a shuddering sigh. "Cheating? How can I cheat when I don't even know the rules?"

"But…what about Roxas?" His voice had fallen to a whisper. I grinned and pulled his shirt over his head.

"Roxas is watching the movie, blissfully unaware."

"Axel!" He complained, tangling his fingers in my hair.

I smiled and stepped back. "You know, for someone who's so against this, you're really not doing all that much to stop me."

"Well, I…" Demyx paused, feeling suddenly cold in the absence of my body. "Why are you over there?"

"I have a feeling that Roxas isn't the problem here." I pressed myself against him again, exalting in his sharp intake of breath. "What are you so worried about?"

He wrapped his arms around my neck and averted his gaze. "Well, I'm uh…I'm not, you know, _experienced_…in this kind of thing…and you are, and what if I'm…" he fixed me with a pleading gaze. "Axel, what if I'm not good?"

I lowered my head and laughed. "Are you s_erious_?"

"Yes!" He said defensively. "Don't laugh, I'm not kidding!"

"Sorry, Demyx." I giggled, shaking my head. "But dude, no one is all that great at first. Besides, it's not your job to be good."

"What does that mean?" He asked warily. "Should I be worried?"

I stroked his hair. "Well, you're on bottom, so your job really isn't all that hard."

"What?" His eyes widened. "I didn't think we were doing…that…yet! I'm not…uh…"

"Hey, hey, calm down." I tilted his chin up and kissed him gently. "Don't freak out, nothing like that has to happen."

He showed a flicker of a smile, but his overall expression was still nervous. "I just…know how you are, and I don't want to…disappoint you."

"Demyx…" I sighed and pulled him into an embrace. "I'm not gonna expect anything from you, okay? I mean, you're the most extreme virgin I've ever met."

He grinned and rested his head on my chest. "I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or an insult."

"I actually got farther than I thought I would." I glanced from his abandoned white shirt to him, taking the opportunity to scan every inch of his exposed torso. For a band geek, he was kind of muscular.

"Can you please stop raping me with your eyes?" He pulled me closer again, blushing.

"Sorry," I ran my fingers slowly down his chest, resting my hands on his hips, "you're too pretty."

He shivered but held back any sounds. "You're just teasing now."

I smirked. "You deserve to be teased, virgin boy."

"No fair!" He pouted, crossing his arms.

Oh, what an invitation. I kissed him hard (probably harder than I should have). He opened his mouth to complain, but it actually helped me out. I took full advantage of it, sliding my tongue in. His complain melted into a surprised half-gasp thing. I swear, Demyx is the king of strange foreplay sounds.

Also, he was a natural at French kissing.

"You sure you've never done this before?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.

He blinked and opened his eyes. "N-No…that…" he exhaled and leaned against me again. "Did that one count?"

"Yes." I kissed his neck again, moving down to his collarbone. Might as well go for the gold while you've got the chance, right?

"Hey…" His attempt at a protest came across as a sigh of pleasure (right in my ear…not fair).

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can ROCK! _

Oh HELL no. Talk about not being fair.

"Hello?" I asked casually, grinning as Demyx tried to recover and catch his breath.

"Did you flush yourself?" Roxas laughed into the phone. "Or are you hiding out in the bathroom so you don't have to watch the movie?"

I ran a hand through my hair. "The second one."

"Well, at least come and cuddle with me. You can fall asleep if you want; I'll wake you up when it's over." Rox sounded a little annoyed, but he wasn't about to let it ruin our evening.

"Okay, I'll be there in a bit. Let me finish up."

"Finish up with what?"

"I'm alone in a bathroom. What do you think?"

"Axel!" He giggled. "Okay, see you soon."

"Righteo, Rox." Again, I waited for him to hang up before I did. I wasn't quite horny enough to forget his pet peeves.

During this time, Demyx had played ninja and replaced his shirt. It was my turn to pout.

"Why am I always around when you have to lie to your boyfriend?" He shook his head, smiling sadly.

I sighed and tried to embrace him, but he moved out of my grip. "Axel, it's me or him. Not both."

"I know…" I shoved my hands into my pockets, utterly loathing the situation. "Hey, I'll call you later. I gotta get back before Rox comes in here."

Demyx nodded. "Yeah, talk to you later."


	6. Chapter 6

"You're such a slut." Larxene laughed and closed her laptop, flicking me in the nose. "Destroying innocence like that."

"Hey, he didn't do much to stop me." I rubbed my nose, inching away from the violent woman.

She snorted. "That still doesn't make it okay, Axel. I mean," she turned and put a hand on her hip (does EVERYONE do that?). "Demyx isn't like me. He won't settle for the title of 'fuck buddy'. You're actually gonna have to be committed."

_Committed, committed, committed…_

It rang in my head. I shivered. "Isn't that a little…drastic?"

"Drastic? Axel, that's what I like to call 'normal'." Larxene sighed and walked to her refrigerator, taking out a gallon of orange juice. "Anyway. Have you talked to him at all?"

I blinked and took a seat at the bar-style counter. "Who, Demyx?"

"No, David Hasselhoff. Have you talked to him?" Larxene slammed the refrigerator door shut. "Yes fucking Demyx! Have you been paying any attention to our conversation?"

"Whoa, chill!" I put my hands in front of me defensively in case she decided to get violent with her juice. "Uh…are you mad?"

She sat beside me calmly and sipped her drink. I swallowed hard. Sudden mood swings were never good signs with her.

"_Mad _isn't the word, Axel." Larxene set the cup down. "Disappointed, maybe. You can't treat people like you do."

Part of my mind wanted to retaliate with a "Well, why _not_?" but I knew that she was right. I kicked my feet idly against the side of the counter. "I don't suppose you'd believe me if I said it was in my blood."

"Nope, no chance." She replied flatly, pushing her cup in small circles. "Look, all you have to do is choose one of them."

Oh, drat. So the conversation boiled down to that.

"Larxene, it's not a matter of choosing. I mean, I _guess_ I love Roxas…" I paused, giving the side of the counter a good hard kick of frustration.

"If you have to guess, then you don't." She smirked.

"Fine, then I _don't _love Roxas." I threw my hands up in the air, landing a kick on the side of the counter that probably did more damage to my foot than effect to my sentence.

Larxene was very quiet for quite some time, simply looking at me. Finally, after several twitches of my left eye, she spoke. "You know, that's the first meaningful thing you've said in a while. You should listen to yourself."

"What the hell? So now you're the moral authority?" I crossed my arms and fought the urge to pout.

She counter-crossed her arms and glared. "I think I'm more qualified than you."

I sighed and gave up on my endless foot-bombarding of the counter. It just wasn't worth it. "I feel really bad about breaking up with Roxas."

"Well, that's good. It shows that you have a conscience. I was beginning to have my doubts." She replied dryly, pushing her juice across the counter. "How exactly do you feel about Demyx?"

I shrugged. "Truthfully, I don't really know. He feels…different than Roxas, though."

Larxene sighed. "Well, that's a start." She glanced at her watch and grimaced. "Look, I gotta get to the school. And so do you, if I'm not mistaken."

I frowned and ran a hand through my hair. "Yeah, one of the Keyboarding students managed to get a pretty bad bug in the system." I grabbed my messenger bag. "Damn college kids."

She smirked. "Like Roxas, right?"

"Exactly."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"And today, you all get your concert music!" Demyx proclaimed cheerfully as his class took their seats. "We only have a few months, so we're going to have to work hard to make it perfect!"

Sora raised his hand. "Demyx, we have over six months until the concert."

"Yeah, we're not s'posed to get that music until Christmas!" Reno complained loudly, propping his booted feet up on the desk in front of him.

Yuffie, largely annoyed by black rubber soles poking into her back, turned around and grabbed the redhead by the collar. "Why don't you shut up and put your dick away?"

Reno blinked, shrinking from the small girl. "Hey now, no need to get defensive." He put his feet back on the ground.

"Yuffie, Reno, stop fighting!" Demyx tapped a ruler on his desk. "I thought you two were dating?"

"He's an ass."

"She's a psycho bitch."

The band director clamped his mouth shut and tried not to laugh. They'd be back together within a few days. "Well, aside from the poor use of language, I'd say that this subject is settled…now, on to the music."

A loud knock sounded at the door and a tall, silver-haired man entered the room, followed by a shorter, nervous-looking boy.

"Hello, Principal Xemnas! Is that a new student?" Demyx exclaimed, taking the boy by the shoulders. "Welcome to the best band class ever!"

Xemnas cleared his throat. "Yes, he just transferred to the music program from the communications program. I hope it isn't too late in the year."

"Of course not!" the band director surveyed the classroom then looked to his new student. "Is there anyone in here that you know?"

Sora waved his hands wildly in the air. "Hey, Rox! Come sit by me!"

"Rox…?" Demyx's voice broke and he coughed. "As in Roxas?"

The blonde boy looked up and smiled. "Yeah, that's me. Is it okay if I sit next to Sora?"

The musician nodded, unable to say anything more. Roxas scampered over to Sora, who shoved Irvine out of his desk to make room for his friend. Irvine stood and straightened his hat, wondering why everyone felt the need to acquaint him with the floor.

"Good luck in your new class, Roxas." Xemnas turned and left the room.

Demyx stood blankly in front of his students, eyes wide open. _Why is Roxas here? I didn't think he was musically inclined. Wait – maybe Axel likes musical people? Yay, I'm qualified. HOLD ON, AXEL LIKES COLLEGE KIDS? _

His eyes narrowed and he ran to his computer, pushing every button that looked like it could do damage. Within seconds it was making a strange beeping sound and error reports were flashing on the screen. Demyx grinned deviously and called the front office.

"Yes?" A crackly voice asked.

"My computer stopped working. Can you send someone to fix it?" the band director replied sweetly.

"Right away." The voice went silent for a few moments. "Axel is on his way."

"Thank you very much." Demyx hung up the phone.


	7. Chapter 7

I whistled as I strolled down the hallway, mercifully unaware of my impending doom. Principal Xemnas scowled at me as I passed. I so very dearly wanted to inform him of the impending fist in his face.

Demyx, however, paced relentlessly back and forth from one end of the room to the other, (I can only imagine the agony of the floor), much to the bewilderment of his students. They followed him silently with their eyes, unsure of their teacher's mental health. Though I'm pretty sure most of them had prior doubts.

When I approached the door, I could see him through the window. Pacing. It was then that I received the first inkling of trouble. I reluctantly knocked on the door.

He froze, clasped his hands behind his back, and pivoted swiftly. "Hello, Axel."

I scratched the back of my neck. "Uhm…hey, Demyx. I heard you had a problem with your computer."

"Yup."

"I'll go…fix it, then."

"Yup."

His cold demeanor worried me. I walked slowly to the computer, which was still flashing error reports. A few simple keystrokes fixed this predicament, but there remained the problem of Demyx's attitude. I stood up slowly and turned back to him, inadvertently scanning the classroom.

And that's when I saw Roxas. And he saw me. And he'd seen everything. And he was shooting me his trademark 'we-are-so-talking-about-this-later' look. I feared that look with a passion.

"Hey, Roxie!" I grinned, waving rather sheepishly. He crossed his arms and gave me a half-wave with his hand. Uh oh.

Fortunately, I didn't have much time to think on that. Demyx had, by this time, clenched his hands into fists and was throwing daggers at me with his eyes. Or at least it felt that way.

"Early dismissal." He hissed, pointing at the still-open door. "Everyone out."

Some of the students looked as if they would retaliate to the command, but the band director's death glare told them otherwise. They clammed up and filed out silently.

Roxas walked past me slowly, glancing back and forth from me to Demyx before disappearing into the hall. I swallowed hard.

When it was just us in the room, Demyx closed the door and locked it, then closed the curtain in the door's window.

"You never told me that Roxas was still in college." He said simply, accusingly. I winced mentally.

"You uh…you never asked, Dem." I grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

"So you like younger guys?" Didn't work. He still sounded like he was ready to rip my arm off and beat me with it.

I shoved my hands in my pockets. "I like what I like. Do I have to stick it in an age bracket?" a slightly chilly response, but he wasn't exactly showering me with roses, either.

Demyx smirked and leaned against a desk. "How old is he, Axel? Nineteen?"

Spot on. Dammit.

"Why the hell do you even care?" I spat, a little louder than was probably necessary. "Why do you give a shit about my personal life?"

He blinked, taken aback, and turned his back to me, inhaling deeply. I suddenly felt guilty.

"I thought you were going to break up with him." Demyx said quietly, glancing at me over his shoulder.

I ran a hand nervously through my hair. "Yeah, about that-"

"You're not going to, are you?" he asked sadly, shaking his head. "You're just going to keep leading me around."

I gritted my teeth. He just crossed the line.

"Look, you need to stop making me out to be so damn antagonistic." I growled in a low tone, trying my best to control my anger. "I'm not a fucking saint, Demyx, I know that I have some issues to work out. But stop assuming that I always take the low road."

He let his arms fall to his sides. "Prove to me that you don't, then."

I smiled (knowing that he couldn't see me) and put an arm around his shoulders, squeezing lightly. "I will."

He narrowed his eyes in the attempt of anger, but a grin was quickly overtaking his face.

"Get out of here." Demyx laughed, pushing me out the door. I nodded and saluted, continuing down the hall.

-------

My apologies...I fixed the repetitiveness at the beginning of the chapter and the crappy indentation that I forgot to check. Edit And the rest of the chapter that I freaking left out!! Man, I'm losing the touch! 


	8. Chapter 8

"_Please _tell me you didn't really do that, Axel." An annoyed, slightly female (yet at the same time, strangely testosterone-sounding) voice blared out of my cell phone.

"Oh, I did, Larxene." I made no attempt to hide the satisfaction in my voice. "I did it and I am very proud."

"You are aware that you crossed the line between romance and stinky cheese, aren't you?" she asked flatly.

Oh, and what a thin line it was. I grinned to myself. "Yes, I am. And I'm following through with that stinky cheese."

"You'd better. I swear to God, Axel, if you hurt Demyx, I will kill you."

"And I have no intention of dying, darling."

And then she hung up on me. I think it was because she couldn't decide between laughing and yelling.

Then again, neither could I. The giddy smile could only last for so long, and then I would actually have to make a move in one direction. I shook my head and clapped my cell phone shut, shoving it back into my pocket.

"Hey, who was that?" Marluxia leaned out of the doorway. "If you're done, get your ass in the house."

I lingered on the deck, reluctant to discuss matters of Demyx and Larxene with the scorned botanist. Finally, I stepped into the kitchen and closed the door.

"It was just Larxene." I shrugged and grabbed a soda from the fridge. "We were talking about that new band director that you never got to meet." I shot a pointed stare at the back of his head, adding dryly, "Because you were late."

His back went rigid. "Larxene, huh?"

"Uh…yeah. I just said that." I turned on the T.V. and plopped down on the couch.

"How's she doing?" he asked idly, propping his feet up on the coffee table.

I smirked. "Warning: Depressed flower boys on couch are more curious than they appear." Looking back on that, it was really corny. But it had the desired effect at the time.

"Hey, I am _not _depressed. That little bitch can go die for all I care." He took a swig of his coke (very angrily, I might add).

I bobbed my head slowly. "Yeah, I'm sure. She's doing fine, by the way."

He made a grunty sound. I took it as some kind of neutral response. And then I threw a pillow at his head.

"You are so full of shit." I sighed and changed the channel. Nothing good was ever on at Marluxia's house.

He replied with another grunt and a return fire of the pillow. Said pillow then joined the ranks of 'abused inanimate objects as a result of angst' along with the floor tiles in the band room.

After a few minutes of silence, I noticed him peeking at me slyly around his coke can. "Does she ever talk about me?"

I grinned and tried to formulate a smartass remark in my head, but-

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can- FUCK YOU, XIGBAR! _

Oh…shit.

Shit, shit, shit.

I stared blankly at my cell phone as the same altered ringtone played over and over. Marluxia eyed the phone warily, but made no move to answer it. Finally, the thing cut to voicemail and I progressed from bewildered shock to a mildly confusing zap.

"Dude, Xigbar's here." Was all I managed to say before a loud knock sounded at the door. I turned my head slowly, eyes wide open, and found that my legs would not obey my command to stand. "D-D-Door-"

"I-I got it." Marluxia said shakily, stumbling toward the door and opening it.

Two tall men stood on the deck; one had long, black dreadlocks and a frown on his face; that would be Xaldin, one of my old acquaintances. The other had long, black-and-grey hair in a ponytail and a beaming smile; that would be Xigbar…another acquaintance, though maybe more personal.

"Axel! I knew you would be here!" The jolly fool exclaimed, tackling me on the couch.

I swallowed hard and forced the edges of my mouth to twitch into a grin. "Xigbar…hey, man! What uh…what brings you to town?"

"Oh, nothing. Just wanted to check on my two favorite little lovebirds." Xigbar poked me in the nose. "But little Roxas is all alone in the nest, what's up with that?"

I narrowed my eyes, quickly recognizing the familiar urge to strangle the eccentric gun fanatic until his face turned blue. "Really, you drove across two states just to visit us? And you dragged Xaldy along with you?"

Xaldin twitched in the doorway. "I thought we established my name years ago, Axel."

"We did. But that was years ago. You're not still sensitive to nicknames, are you, Xaldy?" Actually, having the White Jamaican there was turning out to be pretty fun. He was just as easy to annoy as ever.

Xigbar waved his hand between us. "Hey, don't start." He scratched the back of his neck. I hated when he did that, because it meant two things: one, it confirmed the fact that I'd gotten the habit from him, and: two, it suggested that he had something worrisome to tell me.

"I uh…we need to crash with you for a while." He said quietly, looking idly around the room.

"Who's pissed at you this time?" I asked, not bothering to hide the discontent in my voice.

"Well, there are these guys back home, and- I swear, Axel, they started it-"

"Get to the fucking point. Are they trying to kill you or what?"

"Heh. Xaldin and I kicked their asses pretty bad a few nights ago, but we didn't know they had so many…relatives in the area." The man finished weakly, grinning.

Marluxia set a soda on the table for Xigbar, shooting me a secret, nervous glance as he did so. I responded with a half-hearted shrug; there was no getting rid of them now.

"Hey, Xaldy, get in the house. You're letting all sorts of insect life inside right now." I laughed, but Xaldin didn't. He walked slowly into the house and shut the door.

"Axel, I don't know how else to put this: If you don't stop calling me that, I'm going to cut off your balls and make you eat them." He said simply, taking a seat on the couch opposite mine. I shivered at his seriousness; to this day, I believe that he is fully capable of carrying out his morbid threats.

I grinned and played it off as a joke, of course, but my insides were shivering.

"I guess we'll get going back to my place, then, and you guys can get settled in." I said after an uncomfortable silence, picking up my car keys and heading outside. "I'll see you later, Marly!"

The botanist nodded and smiled, all too eager to have the strange duo out of his house as soon as possible. He waved goodbye as we pulled out of the driveway, but quickly disappeared from view.

"So uh, you guys don't have any bags or anything?" I frowned at the two in the rearview mirror.

"Nope, just my cell phone and some weed Xaldin grabbed from our hiding place. That sure helped out while we were hitchhiking." Xigbar beamed and produced the near-empty bag of illegal drugs. "You know any good dealers around here?"

I gritted my teeth, but they didn't notice. "No! Xigbar, I've been clean for years! Find your own damn drugs."

"Fine, fine. Geez, no need to get all PMS-y." The gun fanatic ran a hand through his hair (yes, I picked that up, too) and stared nonchalantly out the window. Suddenly, he brightened. "Hey, there's that old park! Man, I thought that would've been bulldozed by now…dude, Axel! Remember when we fucked behind the slide?"

The car came to a screeching halt. I glared into the rearview mirror. I think even Xaldin got a little shaken by it.

"There will be no talk of us at the house, understood?" I said in a low tone. "Roxas is suspicious enough as it is."

Xigbar nodded silently, chewing on his upper lip. I nodded along with him to make sure he got the picture, and then set the car in motion again.

"So we can't…y'know…"

"NO."


	9. Chapter 9

He stared intently at the phone, sipping his coffee at random intervals. He'd been sitting in the same position and following the same motion patterns for the better part of the morning, waiting for a call that would never come.

"Okay, get off the damn couch." Larxene commanded, shutting the door to her bedroom. "He's not going to do it today; I know how he operates. He'll need a few days to think about it."

Demyx pouted and set down his coffee cup, surprised at the stiffness of his joints. "What if he doesn't ever call?"

"Well, that would be normal." The woman shrugged and motioned for the musician to stand. "Come on, don't think about it. Whatever he does, he does. You are far too cute to be so distraught over one person."

The band musician grinned at this, but it disappeared quickly. "I'm getting myself into something undesirable, aren't I?"

"Well…yes." Larxene answered nervously. "But don't knock it until you try it, huh?"

He shrugged, a crestfallen air overtaking him. "I guess."

"Look, I've known Axel for more than five years. We met in a night club and ended up fucking later that night. And that's how it's always been. According to him, that's how he met most of his friends." She explained, striving to think of a way to shine a better light on me. (In hindsight, it's a little sad that she took so long to find that light. Am I that dreadful?)

Demyx looked worried. "I'm starting to think that all of this jealousy I'm feeling toward Roxas is only the beginning."

"Hey, don't get me wrong – he's a good guy. Most of the time." She added weakly, mentally kicking herself. "And if you guys ever started dating, there would be no more sex between us. Because it's completely consensual and platonic anyway." Another quick add-on.

He laughed and shook his head. "Please tell me there's hope of changing him?"

"I wouldn't call it _changing_, if I were you." Larxene commented, pulling Demyx up by his shirt collar. "That's what drove him away from Roxas in the first place. Call it…adapting."

"Adapting. Got it." The band director smiled, though Larxene could see the underlying doubt in his eyes. Her mental shins were bruised into oblivion by that point.

And then, the moment. The moment that the phone finally rang.

She'd never seen a person move so fast in her life. One moment, Demyx was standing next to her, and then the next he was beside the phone on the other side of the couch. She blinked and wondered if he had some hidden teleportation power.

"Hello? Axel?" he asked the receiver eagerly, winding the cord around his index finger. However, his ecstatic look melted as fast as she saw it. "Oh, hello, Mom. Yes, I'm happy to hear from you."

Larxene cursed fate and all that controlled it. Or…didn't control it better, to her standards. According to her, I should have made the call. Thank goodness that even if I had wanted to call, I couldn't, because I was in a very precarious situation. But that's for a different page. Back to Demyx's mommy:

"No, I haven't met any nice girls yet. Is there a reason why you're calling?" he sounded a little impatient, but the voice on the other end of the line didn't seem to notice. Larxene continued to hear the muted buzzing emanating to no end from the receiver.

She motioned to the musician for him to hang up the phone, but he could only make a few helpless gestures before diving back into his list of answers to his mother's relentless questioning.

Suddenly, however, his face darkened. "You're thinking of what?" silence ensued. "When?" more silence. "…_Why_?"

Larxene, upon observing the other phone in the kitchen, considered picking it up and informing Demyx that dinner was ready, darling, and that he should come get some while it was still hot.

But logic won. Any self-respecting woman does not invite the hatred of a mother.

The click of the receiver hitting the cradle snapped her out of her trance. "Wha? Oh, you're done. What was that all about?"

The band director crossed his arms, obviously distressed. "My mother is coming to visit."

"…Oh. Well, I'll be fifty miles away if you need me." Larxene waved and made the sign of a cross.

"Come on, she's not that bad. Just talkative." Demyx grimaced. "And judgmental. And a little biased."

"So, I'm guessing she doesn't have a clue about your raging homosexuality."

"…No."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

I opened the door as quietly as I could, but Roxas's superhuman wife-like ears picked up the door's minute creaking as well as if I'd kicked the thing down. He rushed into the kitchen, (wearing nothing but a very oversized T-shirt, by the way), but stopped short of the refrigerator. A dark scowl plagued his angelic features.

"You brought friends." He commented in the voice of the devil. Well, not really. Maybe it was the voice of the devil's pre-pubescent cousin.

Nevertheless, I winced at it. "Um, well…they need a place to stay for a few days."

If possible, his face darkened. It contrasted horribly with the friendly tone he threw into his voice. "Well, are you going to introduce our new house guests?"

I gulped. Suddenly, my palms became very sweaty. And that, my friend, is never a good sign. I put a hand on Xaldin's shoulder, which was quickly brushed off by the quiet man. "This is Xaldin, an old friend from back home. And this is Xigbar-"

The gun fanatic cut me off, trapping me in a very uncomfortable headlock. "Another old friend, right, dude?" he laughed, tightening his grip. "Say 'uncle'! Say it!"

"Okay! Fucking UNCLE! Let me go!" I wriggled out of his grip and straightened my shirt, looking back to Roxas and sighing. "Yeah, that's Xigbar. He can sleep in the garage if you want."

The small blonde didn't seem very comforted by my comment. "I've heard so much about you, Xigbar." He said with a politeness so strained it could have probably been made into guitar strings.

Xigbar could do nothing but stand awkwardly in the doorway, faced with Roxas's death glare. Finally, I closed the door and cleared my throat.

"Uh, I'll show these two to the guest bedroom. Roxie, I'll come to bed in a few minutes, okay?" I said nervously, shooting the blonde a pleading glance. He rolled his eyes and left the room.

Ugh. If I could have possibly been in any more trouble that day, I was.


	10. Chapter 10

"What's wrong, Axel?" a silky voice whispered in my ear. I jumped and sat up in bed, looking around nervously. No one was in the room, not even Roxas. I found this strange at first, since I knew that the boy had wanted to talk to me. Somehow, though, my mind decided to ignore it and dismiss it as normal.

I sighed and scratched the back of my neck, yawning deeply. Even though I didn't want to admit it, I knew that it was Demyx's voice that had murmured to me in my sleep. Fucking dreams.

"Oh, good, you're already awake." Xigbar peeked around the doorframe. "Where's Roxie?"

I shrugged and glanced to the clock. It was only a little after midnight. "I dunno. He probably went over to Sora's house because he was pissed at me. He does that a lot."

The gun fanatic grinned and hopped onto the bed. "Ooh, he's gone. Wanna pull an all-nighter?"

He sucked all of the innocence out of that word.

"No. I promised someone that I wouldn't take the low road." I replied firmly, crossing my arms. The statement was strained, however. There had been a time when Xigbar was absolutely irresistible in my eyes, and memories of that time were beginning to nag at my mind.

"Who is this 'someone', eh?" He asked, smiling wickedly. "Cheating on poor little Roxas, are we?"

"Hey, I haven't cheated…" my voice trailed off as visions of the movie theater beat my brain with a stick. "…much."

"Well, are you gonna tell me his name or sit there and look stupid?"

"Fuck you. His name is Demyx and he works at the same place that I do. Why does it matter to you?" I spat, standing up. I felt awkward talking to Xigbar about my love life. It was just…odd, discussing that sort of thing with someone I'd slept with so many times.

I kind of felt bad about thinking like that, because it was totally different with Larxene. Maybe it was because she was female.

And then I felt sexist.

"Hey, I care about you. You don't have to get all defensive when I want to talk to you about something other than sex jokes and booze." Xigbar narrowed his eyes. I could tell that he was considering just leaving the room and going back to sleep. That was how he handled things.

"Sorry." I offered irritably, half-attempting to fix the situation. "I just don't want to talk about Demyx in the house I share with Roxas. Taboo, y'know?"

"Right, right." His eyes were still narrow. Suspicion. That bastard knew me far too well. "Taboo, of course. It has nothing to do with the fact that you're uncomfortable with me."

I put a hand to my forehead in frustration. "Do you blame me?"

"Nope." He smirked and cocked his head to the side. "After all, it was _all my__ fault _that our relationship ended on such a bitter note."

Sarcasm.

"Okay, yes, fine. I was the one that up and moved here. But, again, can you fucking blame me? We fought over the most trivial things – it was getting pathetic." I gritted my teeth and glanced to the window, wondering if I could die from a two-story drop.

Xigbar shoved his hands into his pockets and grinned, slipping out the door. I sighed and stood up. Might as well; there was no way in hell that I was getting back to sleep after that ordeal.

Still, I couldn't help but wonder what the gun fanatic was grinning about. That devious grin was infamous among our old circle of friends; its presence was rarely the start of something productive or remotely good.

I was suddenly gripped with the urge to call Larxene and make sure that Demyx was safe.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Larxene?" I asked urgently. "Hey, where's Demyx?"

"Oh, he's at the movies with Zexion tonight." The woman answered cheerily. It sounded to me like she was coming off of at least her third beer.

And then her words actually sank in.

"Zexion? The librarian?" I leaned against the wall, puzzled. "Are they…?"

"I don't know!" She exclaimed, and her outburst was followed by several crashes and a thud. Moments later, I heard her again, "Sorry, I tripped."

No shit. "When you see him at the school, can you tell him to call me?"

"Sure, whatever."

Good enough. I hung up. I was hardly in the mood to put up with Larxene's drunkenness.

But, seriously…_Zexion__ the school librarian?_

The movies. The only movie experience I'd had with Demyx was purely sexual…and it ended in an awkward mess. Maybe I was being too touchy-feely with him, but he didn't seem to object much.

Ah, so confusing. Fuck relationships.

I couldn't believe that I actually wanted the boy to call me. I was usually the one that had to be asked to call someone, not the other way around. There was definitely something interesting going on.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"That was a great movie! Thanks for coming with me, Zexion." The blonde beamed and took a sip of his soda, kicking his feet back and forth on the bar stool.

His short companion smiled faintly. "Who orders soda in a bar?"

"I do." Demyx pouted and took another sip. "It's Coke. It's cool. And also very superior to alcohol."

"You do realize that you're over twenty-one?"

"…Yes."

"No taste for alcohol?"

"Kind of…"

The librarian patted his friend on the head. "It's okay, you don't have to explain. Sorry, I didn't mean to make you nervous."

Demyx nodded, gave a sigh of relief, and resumed talk of the movie (which was really awesome, apparently). They were much too entrenched in the story to notice the dark-haired man sitting two chairs away. If they had taken the time to look, they would have observed the strange gray streaks in the man's hair and the way he was grinning deviously at a certain blonde chatterbox.

"You know, I'm really glad that you came. I was going to ask Axel, but-"

"Axel? The computer guy?" Zexion blinked. "You know him?"

"Well, er…sort of…" The musician scratched the back of his neck and blushed slightly. "I'm…waiting for him."

The librarian cocked his head to the side. "Waiting?"

"Uh, don't worry about it." Demyx waved the question away. "I'd better get going; I have to pick my mother up from the airport tomorrow morning."

Zexion nodded slowly, wary of the band director's talk of 'Axel the Computer Guy'. Thanks so much for that title.

"Sure, I'll see you Monday." He hugged Demyx lightly and laid a few dollar bills in front of the bartender. "Do you need a ride home?"

"No, my apartment is pretty close to here." The musician grinned and headed toward the door. "Drive safely!"

Zexion nodded, but remained in his seat.

"_Waiting for him"_. That could mean a slew of things. But the librarian thought he knew which meaning Demyx was implying. And that, he determined, was anything but good. He frowned into his drink.

"So, you like him?" A tall man asked, moving into the adjacent seat. "That kid that just left?"

Zexion stood rigidly and glared at the man. "What business of that is yours?"

Before a reply could be offered, the librarian was out the door. Xigbar grinned satisfactorily and leaned back in his chair.


	11. Chapter 11

Sora stared forlornly at the crying blonde on his doorstep, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "Oh, dear. What's he done this time?" he asked, yawning and ushering the boy inside.

Roxas sniffled and buried his head in his friend's shoulder. "His ex is _sleeping in our house_!" he moaned through the folds of Sora's shirt. "And he wouldn't talk to me about it– not once! I went to brush my teeth and he fell asleep!"

"Maybe he was tired…" the half-conscious brunette offered, a little tired of Roxas's overdramatic and often tear-stained midnight visits.

"I don't think…he's serious…about me." The blonde choked out between sobs.

Sora rolled his eyes, becoming increasingly awake (among other things). "Gee, Rox, how long did it take you to figure that out?"

"Don't be a smartass, Sora."

"Then be _smart_."

Roxas fell silent; his crying ceased. He pulled away from Sora and quietly took a seat on the couch, folding his hands in his lap. "Can I stay here for a while?"

"Well, sure, but do you really think the fight will last that long?" The brunette closed the door and headed to the kitchen to pour his friend a glass of milk.

The blonde shook his head, a determined glint in his eye. "This isn't a fight. It's over."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You _followed _them?" I asked, fighting the urge to put a hand on my hip. Absolutely not. "Xigbar, you can't just waltz in here and start acting like my personal detective."

"Hey, you have a right to know, dude." The gun fanatic shrugged and chuckled. "The blonde…he's not your type, trust me."

I sighed and didn't put a hand on my hip (HA). "How do you know that? Are you psychic now?" I paused as the front door started to open; Roxas was home. Quickly, I whispered, "We'll finish this later. Get home!" and hung up the phone.

"Well, Roxie, you're home ear-" Frozen in my tracks, I could do nothing but point dumbly at the man in my kitchen. "Demyx?"

The blonde blinked, confused at my confusion. "Well, I…uh…sorry, the front door was open and…I guess your doorbell's broken…"

That it was. I'd promised to fix it, but…

"It's been dead for a while, don't worry about it." I forced a smile and ran a hand through my hair. "So, why are you even out so late?"

The band director beamed. "I'm picking up my mother from the airport in the morning, and I'd be delighted if you came with me."

Oh dear.

"Hey, Demy, you know that I haven't broken up with Roxas yet, right?" I muttered, leaning against the counter.

He frowned and crossed his arms. "I thought he broke up with you earlier?"

"Not that I know of…" I looked around the kitchen for any sign of a breakup note. Nothing. "Where did you hear that?"

The musician scratched his head and tapped his foot rhythmically on the ground. "That's odd…Sora called and said that Roxas wasn't going to be in class for a few days, and when I asked him why, he said it was because Roxas had just broken up with you and needed to move all of his stuff to Sora's house." He beamed at me. "And that's why I came over!"

I think my jaw touched the floor.

"That's…" convenient. "I'd be happy to accompany you to the airport tomorrow, Demyx."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Larxene glared at her alarm clock. _Five o'clock. Just fucking be five o'clock._

Then she could get up and preoccupy herself with getting ready for work, which was infinitely better than the dream-hell she'd just jarred herself out of.

Four-thirty.

Four thirty-one.

Four thirty-one and twenty-three seconds.

Screw it.

She sat up a bit too quickly and put a hand to her forehead, blinking rapidly. A hangover. Just what she needed. She glared at the wall and waited for her head to stop throbbing.

Xigbar. What a fucking loser. She still didn't know why she'd told him where Demyx was. Hell, she didn't even know the guy very well; he was just 'Axel's Creepy Ex'. And she'd been too drunk to care whether his intentions were pure or not.

Of course, she knew that he wouldn't harm the musician, but she also knew that he'd dated me; and to her, that meant that Xigbar must have been mentally unstable to some extent (which was, you know, a really big compliment).

As if it was acting on some cruel cue, the phone started ringing. Larxene groaned disapprovingly and reached for it, half-wanting to answer it and half-wanting to throw it across the room.

"Hello?" Logic won.

"Hey, Larx." A low voice said, somewhat guiltily. "How's it going?"

"…Marluxia?" she asked, astonished that he was contacting her. "Why the hell are you calling?"

He gnawed on his lip, leaning against his kitchen counter. "I uh…I wanted to catch you before you left for work."

"Well, you did a great fucking job. I was sleeping." She lied, grinning satisfactorily when she heard him clear his throat nervously.

"Oh, sorry…" he paused, cursing himself mentally. Any ground given to Larxene would be used to his ultimate disadvantage, and he knew it. "Can I come over?"

It was her turn to pause; she almost dropped the phone. "_Why_?"

"I want to talk to you."

"Whatever." She hung up the receiver. Her head was hurting too bad for a phone argument. At least in person she could kick him in the balls.


	12. Chapter 12

"Is that him? Is that him in there? Hey, why are you blocking the do-"

"Dumbass, get away from there! He's sleeping!" I shoved the prematurely graying man away from my bedroom. "He wanted to crash here."

Xigbar stared at me intently, motioning for me to finish the sentence. "So what, you just let him stay? No sex or anything?"

"No!" I exclaimed, a little louder than I'd meant to. Gritting my teeth, I turned anxiously to the door, listening for any sounds of movement. None. Good. "Go away, you'll wake him up!"

"You're so demanding today. I think you're frustrated." The gun fanatic nodded sagely and walked into the living room, glancing to the clock. "Fuck, it's almost three in the morning. I guess that ruins my plans to sleep."

I took a seat on the couch, pouting in a very un-manly way. "I _am_ frustrated. This is confusing."

"Dude, you haven't even gotten to the confusing part, trust me. You don't know the _meaning_ of a confusing relationship." Xigbar shook his head slowly and offered a small smile. "I dated this one guy around two years ago; man, what a nutcase."

"Demyx isn't a nutcase, you retard." I threw a pillow at said retard. He skillfully deflected it with his foot.

"Fine, fine. But I'm telling you, he's not gonna be an easy one. Just putting it out there." He raised his hands defensively; I still had three more pillows. "I mean, you might have to…you might have to change, dude."

"Yes, it's such a shocking revelation. I'm so glad that you and your infinite wisdom were able to help me realize that." I replied flatly, catching him unawares in the jaw with one of my fluffy projectiles.

He narrowed his eyes and picked up the pillow, aiming for my head. A few moments later, however, he lowered it, raising an eyebrow suspiciously. "Hey, where's Roxas?"

"Probably at Sora's. He broke up with me." I shrugged and turned on the T.V.

He dropped the pillow. "B-Broke up? When did this happen?" Xigbar moved between me and the television set, waving his hands. "Dude, you can't just keep me in the dark about this stuff!"

"Did you ever wonder why I let Demyx stay over?" I sighed deeply. "You weren't listening earlier when I was talking about that 'Roxas and Demyx in the same house' taboo thing, were you?"

A blank stare. I don't know why I expected anything more.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Knock, knock, knock._

"Nobody's home."

_KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK. DING-DONG._

"Nobody's fucking home, Marluxia!"

Silence.

"…You said I could come over." The boy's hurt voice was muffled by the door.

Larxene glanced away from the television, but only for a moment. "Well, it's unlocked."

The door creaked open and he poked his head around the doorframe, a very dejected look on his face. "Hi."

Now, personally, I like to believe that deep down inside Larxene, there's a scared little girl who just wants to be loved. I used to fancy that the reason why she was trying so hard to keep her face bored and displeased as she acted thoroughly unimpressed by his entrance.

"So, did you come to apologize or fuck me? Because neither is acceptable." The cold reality was: she could have cared less if he'd run to the kitchen at that very moment and jabbed a knife through his heart.

Marluxia blinked and shut the door, shuffling his feet nervously. "N-Neither, I just wanted to talk, I mean," he paused at the smirk she replied with. "Oh, come on, Larxene, we both know that there are a lot of unresolved issues…and stuff…"

"And you just happened to want to resolve these issues at four in the morning? What prompted this?" The woman wasn't convinced.

He coughed and moved slowly toward a chair. "Well, you know how Axel is going through all of this shit right now, and I started thinking about my own shit, and…I dunno, I really just want us to be okay."

Larxene went silent at this, pursing her lips. "There's nothing to say about us. We just didn't work out, that's all."

"It's more than that, Larx, and you know it." Marluxia sat down across from the woman, staring her straight in the face. "I'm not backing down this time. I know that I was an asshole sometimes-" she cleared her throat loudly, "…okay, I was an asshole most of the time, but things are different now, I swear!"

She cocked her head to the side. "Really? You've got your bipolarity under control? Speaking of control, what have you done about that?"

"I'm taking medicine." His voice grew dangerously low. "And you know damn well that we both have control issues; don't you dare try to lay it all on me."

Larxene stood up, staring down at her ex like he was no more than an insect. "You put me through hell for a year and a half, Marluxia. You had me in a constant state of fear, never knowing what kind of person I was going to come home to. You single-handedly ruined every one of my friendships except for Axel, and that was only because you liked him." She crossed her arms and pointed toward the door. "Get the fuck out of my house."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Crowded and dirty. Typical for a big-city airport. Demyx's attitude didn't do much for my mood, either; he felt the need to explore every nook and cranny of the place while we were waiting for his mother. Needless to say, several travelers, flight attendants, and kiosk venders were reasonably irked by the time the plane finally arrived. I could virtually hear the collective sigh of relief as I dragged the musician into the gate's waiting area.

"Flight number 359 from Chicago to New York City is now unloading at gate B52." A woman's voice droned over the loudspeaker.

Demyx shifted in his seat.

"So, what is your mom like? You didn't tell me anything besides the negative." I leaned back, apathetically surveying the crowd of passengers filing out of the gate.

He exhaled slowly. "She's…unique. It takes some time to get used to her." Great. That meant that she was a psycho bitch who was gonna rip my throat out in my sleep. "But she's really nice when you get to know her."

"Uh…huh." I dragged out the words, trying to think of something pleasant to say in return. "So in other words, she's a psycho bitch who's gonna rip my throat out in my sleep." Damn you, tongue!

Demyx blinked several times, glancing from me to the gate. I think he was unsure as to whether the question was a joke or not. I laughed awkwardly.

Thank God the woman walked over to us at that moment.

"Demykins! You're so tall, look at you!" A plump, cheerful, middle-aged woman practically picked the musician up off the floor. "And…light!" she released her grip, looking him up and down suspiciously. "Have you been eating? Do you have one of those food disorders?"

"No, Mom, I don't have a food disorder." Demyx grinned and picked up his mother's carry-on bag. "This is Axel, he's one of the teachers at the school where I work."

The woman turned to me, trying her best to hide her shock at the sight of my hair. I probably had reason to be counter-shocked; her platinum blonde hair looked horrible on a woman her age (and she'd forgotten to lighten her eyebrows, it was terrifying).

"Hello, Axel." She said sweetly, though the plastic smile she displayed hardly convinced me of her sincerity. "It's nice to meet you."

I narrowed my eyes and extended my hand. "It's nice to meet you, too, Mrs….?"

She shook it slowly, absorbing my equally plastic smile with equally narrowed eyes. "Just call me Delia, doll."

"Right, then!" Demyx stepped between us, giggling nervously. "Now that we're all acquainted, let's head to baggage claim! Come on, Mom!" he placed a heavy hand on the woman's shoulder and led her down the concourse. I started to follow, but then he turned to me. "Axel, would you go and get us some drinks? I saw a machine down that way." He emphasized the last two words, and suddenly I understood. What an angel.

"Gotcha, Dem. I'll meet you guys at the car."


	13. Chapter 13

The ride home was excruciating. Not only did Delia insist on playing her own CDs, a mixture of cheesy love songs and Frank Sinatra, but I'd never seen a person eat so many pieces of gum in a single sitting. I mean, sure, I liked gum, (especially while teaching class – it relieved stress), but not to the point of obsession.

Upon noticing my noticing her, she kindly informed me that she always kept her purse stocked with at least three packs of minty-fresh annoyance at a time; she was trying to quit smoking, you see.

Naturally, I reached into the glove compartment and lit one up. I don't smoke, mind you. The cigarettes belonged to Xigbar.

Demyx raised an eyebrow and jabbed me in the ribs. I pretended not to notice and glanced at Delia in the rearview mirror. "You wouldn't mind, would you? I'm getting a killer craving."

She flashed her plastic smile and popped another piece of gum. "Not at all, dear."

Demyx sighed and sank down in his seat, a look of utter helplessness on his face. I think that was when he realized that the war had only begun.

"So, you have a very nice car." Delia commented, tugging idly at a loose bit of upholstery.

I laughed uproariously, and then took my time exhaling a puff of smoke. She frowned and leaned away from it. "Yeah, I've had her since I was in high school."

I failed to mention that only the back two doors were functional. The driver and passenger doors had been soldered to the frame to keep them from falling off.

Delia looked as if she would say something else, but pursed her lips and looked away instead.

I grinned inwardly.

"Well, we're home!" Demyx exclaimed nervously, practically vaulting himself out of the window. His blonde hair bobbed up the steps and into his apartment before I could turn the car off.

Delia looked disapproving of her son's actions but maintained her silence, grabbing her Orbit-factory purse and heading to the door.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can ROCK! _

I leaned against the wall of Demyx's guest bedroom, thoroughly convinced that I would ignore my phone.

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can RHYME! _

All of the people that I cared about knew that if I didn't answer after the first ring, I was either in a bad mood or dead.

_Bitches love me 'cuz they know that I can-_

"Fuck, Larxene! What do you want?" I screamed into the phone, not at all happy with my quick glance to the caller ID.

She laughed cynically. "Demmy's mommy is there, isn't she?"

I closed my eyes and sighed deeply. "Who told you?"

"Some guy at your house that was eating all of your food."

"That's Xigbar." I put a hand to my forehead and swore to kill him if he'd touched my stash of Cheetos. "Hey, did you see a big guy with crazy sideburns?"

I could almost see her "What the hell?" face.

"Um, no. Are you sure that wasn't one of your _imaginary _friends?"

"Forget it." I frowned. Xaldin hadn't made his presence known since the day he'd arrived. "Anyway, I'm staying over here tonight."

She whistled. "Oh, naughty! And his mom is there and everything!"

"Screw you, I just don't want to drive back to my house right now. I…have a headlight out." I scratched the back of my neck, hoping that the excuse suited her.

"Axel, that headlight has been out for over a year." She replied dryly. I imagined that her hand was on a set course to her hip. After a few seconds of patronizing silence, she added accusingly, "You don't want to face Roxas."

I grimaced. She knew me too well. "…That, too." I offered weakly.

"You guys have to talk about it sometime."

"We've only been broken up for a day!"

"Two days."

"The day when I didn't know about it doesn't count!"

"Fine. But you have to give him closure, Axel. And all of his stuff." She said very matter-of-factly. "Otherwise, you both will just end up in court."

I narrowed my eyes. "Again with the moral authority. Remind me which frigid bitch kicked Marly out of her house for telling the truth."

"Don't bring him into this, Axel! After all you've done to Roxas, you owe him a simple conversation. You can't deny that." I thought I heard her voice crack, but I couldn't be sure.

"Whatever, I'll call him later." I hung up, figuring that she'd be wallowing in guilt over Marluxia for a good three hours or so.

Demyx poked his head into the room. "Sorry, are you still on the phone?"

"No, no. I'm done. It was just Larxene." I ran a hand through my hair, wondering if it would be appropriate to apologize for the ride home from the airport.

"Well, um…Mom made dinner, so if you're hungry…" he inched into the room, but made no move to shut the door. I pouted on the inside.

"Sure, if it's not laced with arsenic." I replied sarcastically, landing a quick peck on the unsuspecting blonde's cheek.

He recoiled quickly, casting several nervous glances into the living room, but I'm positive that I saw him blush and smile. "It's s-spaghetti and meatballs. And don't do that!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

The cyanide and meatballs looked absolutely unappetizing. I stared at it in horror for a few minutes before poking it with my fork and taking a tentative bite.

Delicious; just as I'd thought. I narrowed my eyes and put my fork down, waiting patiently for the seizures and cardiac arrest to set in.

Delia noted the questionable look on my face. "Is the food alright, dear?"

I cleared my throat. "Oh, yes, it's uh…wonderful. I'm just not used to eating this early."

"Of course." The woman nodded her platinum blonde head and took a bite of her homemade poison.

Demyx didn't take his eyes off of his plate, slowly consuming his food with the enthusiasm of a death row inmate. I felt a twinge of guilt; the satanic bitch across the table _had _given birth to him. And I suppose that created some sort of bond between them.

The awkward silence lasted for over ten minutes, during which Demyx managed to drop his fork five times.

As if she were trying to get on my nerves, (just when I thought that could never happen), Delia asked casually, "Are you positive? I could make you something else."

"It's fine." I managed to sound polite through clenched teeth.

She reached over and patted my hand. "Alright, dear, if you're sure."

And that's when I considered the possibility of a one-handed life. Nodding stiffly, I slowly retracted my damaged hand into my lap, discreetly wrapping it in a napkin to avoid contaminating my clothes.

"Do you cook much?" Delia persisted. The glint in her eye told me that she was enjoying my discomfort. Unholy wench.

"No, I don't." I replied rather flatly, though I masked my intent with an irritated poke to my roll. "Bread's fucking cold."

She blinked at my vulgar language, mouth agape as if her virgin ears were tainted with the presence of such impure sound waves. "Y-You can put it in the microwave, dear."

I flashed a halfhearted smile and practically dashed into the kitchen.


End file.
